A Burnt Fever
by Pete the Rock
Summary: Ash gets an unexpected aid when gamblers want to make Ash pay for not winning the Evergrand Tournament. Fireshipping


_Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon

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**A Burnt Fever**

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Ash had sat in the stands in a large stadium. It was empty, not another human was there but his yellow mouse, Pikachu stood by him. Ash looked into the giant empty bowl, a gentle breeze brushing his wild raven black hair. He smiled, happy that something had ended and for him to sigh a breath of relief. "The Evergrand Tournament's over," he muttered. "Another top eight finish." Top eight. He lost in the quarterfinals.

("Sometimes, that's the way things go,") Pikachu moralized. It was his buddy and he was right.

"Yeah, it means we need to train harder and become more of a force to be reckon with." More travels were on Ash's mind. He exited the stadium, his blue sweat-tee and red baseball cap in his slung back arm. "Tomorrow, we head back to Pallet. Mom's obviously proud of our progress."

("You think?") Ash had to chuckle at that retort. He and Pikachu would be heading back to the hotel where they stayed for the tournament. Without warning, however...

"There he is!" groaned a grown male. Ash and Pikachu turned to the sound where a few men in ragged clothes approaching them. They seemed a bit upset. "It was you losing to Tyson that we lost all our money." There was a wager going on in the stadium? "Because of that, we require a little settlement for that quarterfinal loss." To Ash, some people had engaged in underground gambling.

"My Pikachu losing to Tyson's Meowth cost you your cash?" Ash scoffed. "And you want me to pay for your issues? Yeah, that's gonna happen." Not happy, the men drew knives in various sizes. Cowards! "Always the hard way, right?"

"You're nothing but an embarrassment to Pallet Town." Ash and Pikachu were surrounded, knives ready to carve them. Ash and Pikachu could fight them. They weren't too intimidated by their forceful weapons.

"Starmie, Rapid Spin!" someone female shouted. Everyone turned to the sound where a spinning thing of purple sped into the area and KABONG! The guys were struck so hard in the heads, they were knocked out before they fell to the ground. The spinning purple stopped rotating, revealing to be a purple starfish with a conjoined twin on the back and a ruby gem on the front. That's a Starmie? Ash and Pikachu turned to a young reddish-brunette braided-pigtails girl in a yellow sweatshirt and red skirt.

"Macey?" he wondered. The girl was breathing pretty heavily. Did she know about the ambush on Ash and Pikachu? They dashed over to the girl and in time to catch her collapsing. Ash felt her head. Warm. "Whoa, she's got a fever." Starmie caught up to the three only to continue the pursuit as Ash, carrying the girl in his arms, and Pikachu escaped the area before those thugs reset consciousness. In a quiet area near the fountain, Ash placed a damp cloth on her forehead, trying to ease the heat burning her.

("When did Macey get here?") Pikachu wondered. It had to be during the tournament.

"Can't blame her for bailing us out. Probably payback for when I saved her from injury back at Indigo Plateau." He sighed in that moment of memory. "Too bad Misty isn't here to intervene. She wouldn't like the situation."

("Why? You're treating a sick girl.") And who was he meaning?

"Maybe..." Suddenly, Macey began to reopen her eyes. She was becoming alert but still felt delirious.

"Is...that you, Ash?" she murmured. Ash figured that she would be okay but still clamped on precaution.

"Take it easy. You've got a fever." Ash was showing care for Macey and with Pikachu safely at his side, all the attention was on the girl. She was ready to talk.

"I...I heard that you and...Misty separated and she..." She coughed a couple times. What did she pass through in order to meet up with Ash? "...She had gone to Cerulean...Gym and...you were on another journey." To Pikachu, it appeared to be more than a simple fever.

("Ash, she needs a doctor,") it advised. Good idea.

"Pikachu knows what you need," Ash explained. "Hang on." Once more, Ash carried Macey. This time he carried her to a nearby hospital where staff needed something to do. What, no injuries to mend? At least there was an opportunity to help a patient. Ash entered the lobby where a receptionist saw the girl in his arms.

"What's going on?" she wondered as she exited her post and over to the two.

"She's sick," Ash quickly answered. A doctor who saw Ash carry Macey wheeled out a gurney for Ash to place her on. The doctor strolled Macey into the ER. Ash hoped she would be okay. He waited in the lobby for hours, practically to the point of falling asleep. It was pretty late, nearly midnight and he was still pretty young for late times. Pikachu? Gone. He was out like a light. Starmie stayed awake. How could you tell if a starfish was alert? It had no face.

"Mr. Ketchum?" It was the receptionist. Ash turned, hoping for good news.

"How's Macey?" The receptionist gazed into open air. Not a good sign.

"So that's her name, huh?" Really? You didn't know what her name was? "Well anyway...Macey is suffering some food poisoning and major fatigue. It doesn't appear like there's much that needs to be worried about since we've neutralized the poison. This hospital specializes in that area." Ash breathed a sigh of relief. She would be okay.

"That's good. I thought something worse but I can take that." With the news, Ash could use a rest.

"She did wake up a bit and requested that you spend the night alongside her." Kind of an odd request. Even Ash had to question what Macey asked for.

"Isn't it after visiting hours?"

"Yeah, I'd advised her about that but...she didn't care. She really wanted to see you and... She's a precious girl." Was she? Ash huffed, feeling the pressure. They entered the ICU room holding Macey. Macey heard the door open, viewing the receptionist and Ash.

"Ash, hey," she groaned with a smile. "You okay?" Pikachu leaped onto the bed where Macey petted the mouse with the lightning bolt for a tail.

"I should be asking you that question," Ash teased. "You're the one who had a fever when you saved me from those gamblers." Macey gleefully smiled with that remark. "I take it this is payback from during the Silver Conference, huh?"

"Yeah, those guys should know better than to gamble on kids like us." Why anyone would put up money on kids was beyond them. "Any who, ever since you rescued me from bad injury before and Vulpix from Team Rocket, I still wanted to spend time with you. You know, get battling tips like how you used Katie's Ice Beam against her, visit our families from Mahogany and Pallet Town and even go on a few dates between the two of us as long as Misty isn't in the way." Again with Misty? Why did she needed to be brought up so many times?

"Misty's actually back in Cerulean City where she's the gym leader. She's no longer attached to my hip." Nice way to put it. "Besides, she was one of my coaches along with Brock. There was nothing going on between us." As if completely recovered, Macey grasped Ash's hands, startling the raven-haired trainer. This looked like a marriage proposal.

"So, you don't have a girlfriend?" Afraid not. Afraid because Ash had a panicked facial reaction of someone who didn't know what a girlfriend was even if it smacked him in the face...several times.

"I...I wasn't really having any intention to looking for a girlfriend. That's more of Brock's department." To Macey, this was an open invitation.

"Then, can I be your girlfriend?" Wow! Ash, you've been marked. Pikachu was proud that his partner was about to become a dated machine.

"Maybe knowing love might not be so bad. Why not?" Macey giggled a laugh, happy to hear that her proposal was accepted.

"Thank you!" She leaned in and laid a big kiss on Ash's lips...and almost yanked him onto the bed. Wow! Talk about ICU LUV! Wait, no one had ever thought of that. Never mind. The receptionist watched, leaving the two alone. The next morning rose and one nurse chose to check on Macey. Trust the sight when she opened the door. She's in good hands. She saw a pair of heads attached by the ears. Both asleep, the nurse decided to leave the pair alone. As soon as they would wake up, Macey would be discharged from the hospital and both she and Ash could return to Pallet Town. Right now, sleep was on their minds. Let them rest.


End file.
